The burgeoning of terror
by Rinusagitora
Summary: Karin-centric oneshot. Shinigami!Karin AU. WARNINGS- graphic violence, dysfunctional families. /Karin is in middle school. Karin is helpless, and the people who are supposed to care about her seem content to leave it that way./


Karin loathed gym class. Of course, she adored sports, especially soccer, but the fun was sucked out of it when she was supposed to do it for a grade. She normally smoked in the equipment closet instead.

Of course, it was a creepy place. Karin had nerves of steel. She faced death in the maws of hollows more times than she cared to count. While plusses tormented her, she maintained her cool. Still, it was windowless, stuffy. Every creak sent her hair on end.

It was creepier than usual though.

Karin put out her cigarette, picked up her phone, and dialed for Kisuke Urahara.

"Good morning, Karin-chan!" he cheerily answered. "What can I do for you?"

"I need you to come to the equipment closet at Karakura Middle School. I'm getting weird vibes from this place."

"Quick and to the point, sounds serious. I'll be there in a second."

Karin hung up. Her eyes darted around warily, back and forth, back and forth, in search of something, anything, amiss.

Kisuke melted through the walls. He held his hat on his head and grinned.

"Sure musty in here, isn't it?" he said. He pulled a rectangular device from his coat and held it up in the air. "I'm not getting anything... but, there's lots that can be setting off your reikaku, Karin-chan. You are an empath. Perhaps someone outside is upset?"

Karin looked down at her shoes. She was embarrassed to have pulled Kisuke away for nothing. "Maybe. Sorry, I'll get the hang of this shit someday."

"It's no problem. I'd rather you call me if you sense something malicious and have it turn out to be a false alarm than someone get hurt if you ignore it. I guess I'll see you again tonight, though. Have fun!"

"Bye, Urahara."

Karin probed outside with her foreign, empathetic powers. Sure enough, when she ventured into the field, hostility was potent. It churned her stomach. She wasn't close enough to any of her classmates to know who it was or what their problem was though.

There was only ten minutes left for class. She drew a frowny face in the dirt on the ground. The bell rang. Karin stood to leave, and then froze.

Tamuya Yashiki stood in the doorway. He smiled. He reeked of sinister energy.

The knife he held against his chest confirmed Karin's feelings.

"Hello, Kurosaki," he said.

"You gonna launch into some fucked up psychobabble?" she asked lamely, as she reached behind her to grab a baseball bat.

"No. You're just... so pretty, y'know."

He charged. Karin swung her bat up. She missed. Tamuya stabbed down and caught her shoulder.

"Fuck!" Karin snapped. She dropped the bat and kneed his balls. He yelped. She jabbed his throat.

The knife slid between her intercostals in her back.

Karin's vision blurred. She piled in a heap on the floor and feebly wheezed. Her lungs burned like never before. With every breath, her blood gushed from her back.

Tamuya laid next to her. He caressed her face with his clean hand. "You're like a pretty china doll. I'm gonna have so much fun with you." he said. He kissed her. Karin spit up blood. He happily licked it off his lips.

Kisuke's sandal connected with Tamuya's temple. He chanted, and Tamuya's chest opened like a hollow's.

* * *

Karin's eyes opened to the beige ceiling of Kisuke's guest room. Her lungs still burned and she began to hyperventilate. Panic ripped through her body. She would have had to watch Tamuya play with her remains before she was exorcised if Kisuke was even a minute later.

"He died, you know," Ururu said unceremoniously, with obvious disgust. She sat next on the floor next to Karin's bed with a thin novel open between her hands. "Good riddance and all, but... Dad says he was possessed by a hollow with the ability to puppet people's bodies when he attacked you. It's nasty thinking about it."

"That's... fucked up." Karin croaked. "Was he exorcised?"

"No. He's still at large." Ururu closed her book. "You shouldn't be alone anymore. I know you don't like school, but you're a tasty morsel to hollows with your reiatsu. I know it's a contemptible thing to say, but at least when you're with your classmates, you can use them as shields."

"... yeah," Karin agreed. She felt light-headed. It was contemptible, and she refused to use human life like something as easily discarded as trash. She and many other people were sure to succumb if she didn't learn how to protect herself. "I'll start attending class." She needed to talk to Ichigo as well.

* * *

Karin was not on speaking terms with Ichigo since the Winter War. She needed his help, though.

She knocked on her brother's door before she forced herself in.

"Karin, is everything okay?"

"Well... no." She nervously picked at her cuticles. "We need to talk about shinigami thing," she said.

"Shinigami? I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Cut the crap. Captain Toushirou Hitsugaya and Kisuke Urahara have told me about you. Right now, I don't care what your reasons are for keeping this shit from me, but I'm in danger. I was almost killed by one of my classmates who was possessed by a hollow. Teach me how to control my powers and use them against hollows."

Ichigo cleared the room between them. He grabbed her by her shoulders, his fingers dug into her shoulders. "Karin, you can't get involved in this! Do you understand dangerous these powers are?"

"I'm already involved!" Karin snapped. "I was fucking stabbed in my lung. My best option now is to run away. I don't ask for much, all I want is your help so I can protect innocent lives."

"No. You are safer as you are now. The stronger you are, the more hollows you'll attract. Never go anywhere alone, and run when you're being chased. That's all I can do."

"Do you want me to die?" Karin screamed. "I'm going to die if this keeps up! Do you wanna put Dad and Yuzu through another death in the family?"

"No, which is why I'm refusing to teach you."

Karin's nostrils flared. She wanted to cry. Never before had she felt so betrayed by her own family. It was like Ichigo didn't even care whether she lived or died. If he could go and fight, why couldn't she? "You're a terrible brother. When I'm killed, it's on your head. Have fun explaining that to Yuzu." she said, and then stormed away.

* * *

Coach's whistle blew. Karin, because of her poor attendance, was tasked to clean up after class. She collected their kickballs and headed towards the equipment closet. She stared at its entrance. From the outside, it looked like an evil place.

She swallowed the lump in her throat and opened the door.

Tamuya rushed Karin on all fours. He knocked her over. Their kickballs flew, she bellowed with fear as his nails dug into her ribs.

"Kurosaki! What's going on?" their coach shouted. "Stop screwing around!"

"Coach, she's bleeding!"

Tamuya's fingers crept towards Karin's eyes. She screamed and covered her face with her arms. She thrashed beneath Tamuya's ghost.

"Help!" she cried. Coach grabbed her by her underarms and dragged her away from the closet. She wept, and crawled away.

"What happened? Did something fall on you?" Coach asked.

"There's someone in there!" she cried, "Tamuya is in there!"

"Tamuya is dead! What happened in there?"

Karin fell onto her side and sobbed. "He's gonna kill me," she whimpered, "I'm gonna die…." Tamuya cackled and clacked his teeth.

* * *

Kisuke held Tamuya at arm's length, like a trivial spirit. "I wish I didn't have to kill you, but you're a real pain in the ass, kid," he said.

His cane slammed against Tamuya's forehead. He instantly disintegrated.

Karin breathed a sigh of relief. Her ribs and back ached, but she healed quickly.

"I need help," she whispered. "I'm scared."

Kisuke's gaze was palpable. Sympathy, heartbreak. Perhaps he drew parallels between her and his own children. "We'll help, Karin-chan. Come over every day after school. I'll teach you how to protect yourself."


End file.
